Protecting device for self-acting igniters.



N01. 774,844. v PATENTED NOV. 15, 1904.

J. KELLERMANN.

PROTECTING DEVICE FOR SELF ACTING IGNITERS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 2a, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented November 15, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

JACQUES KELLERMANN, OF BERLIN, GERMANY.

PROTECTING DEVICE FOR SELF-ACTING IGNITERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 774,844, dated November15, 1904.

Application filed December 28, 1903. Serial No. 186,826. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J AGQUES KELLERMANN, merchant, a subject of theEmperor of Austria-Hungary, residing at 13 None Jacobstrasse, in thecity of Berlin,Kingdom of Prussia and German Empire, have invented acertain new and useful Protecting Device for Self- Acting Igniters, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to a protecting device for. the ignitingbodies employed in the automatic ignition of illuminating and othercombustible gases, particularly for illuminating purposes in lamps andthe like, and it is intended to protect the igniting body against therapid destruction resulting from the action of an excess of gas which isliable to destroy the igniting body both mechanically by the excessivepressure of the gas being made to act on the delicate structure of theigniting body and also by the force of the slight explosion whichfrequently occurs on the ignition of the volume of gas in the vicinityof the igniting body, while, on the other hand, the igniting body in theigniters as heretofore constructed is also subject to destruction bychemical means in consequence of the high heat of the combustion of anexcess of gas and by the heat of the gases of combustion, whereby theparticles of the igniting body are liable to a partial fusion, whichgreatly impairs and even destroys their efficiency. These inconveniencesare avoided in my invention by inclosing the igniting body in aconically-shaped casing of suitable material made pervious to the gas,whereby only a small fraction of the gas and air mixture which is,however, sufiicient for ignition is admitted to the igniting body, whilethe greater part of the gas and also the gases of combustion aredeflected sidewise, so that they are prevented from injuriously actingupon the igniting body, which is also protected thereby from theinjurious eflects of the heat of combustion.

My invention is shown in various modifications on the accompanyingdrawings-as, for instance, attached to a'perforated chimneytop attachedto the upper end of an ordinary lamp-chimney in Figures 1 and 2. Fig. 3is a view similar to Figs. 1 and 2, illustrating the use of a wirespiral for the purposes of my invention. Fig. 4 is a sectional view ofthe device itself shown as detached from the lid and corresponding tothe modification of Fig. 3.

The protecting device comprises,essentially, a comically-shaped casingturned point downward and made of any suitable material which will allowthe illuminating-gas to have access to the igniting body 6, which isinclosed by the conical casing c. In the modification represented byFig. 1 of the drawings the easing 0 consists of a conical or funnelshaped piece of wire-gauze, while in Fig. 2 the device is shown as afunnel-shaped piece of sheet metal 0 or of other suitable material, thewalls of the funnel being solid and an opening d at the point of thefunnel serving for the admission of the gas or of the gas and airmixture, respectively. In Figs. 3 and 4E of the drawings the cone orfunnel shaped casing is shown as consisting of a funnelshaped -woundspiral wire. The gas or the gas mixture enters through the intersticesbetween the several windings of wire, whereby just enough of the entirevolume of gas is admitted to the igniting body as will suffice foreifecting the ignition, and the spiral shape presents the furtheradvantage that the minute gas-currents streaming through the intersticesbetween the spiral windings effect a very efficient cooling of thecasing, so as to prevent overheating of the igniter. It is obvious thatthe casing need not be of strictly conical or funnel shape throughout aslong as it is downwardly tapering to a point. In the modification shownin Fig. t the casing is shown to consist of an upper cylindrical part 6and of a lower funnel-shaped portion 0 The device may either besuspended above the lamp-chimney together with the igniter by anywell-known means or it may be secured to a perforated chimney-lid a,secured by means of a perforated short end of piping or otherwise to thetop of the lamp-chimney, in which latter case the very annoyingoscillation is avoided and the gases of combustion are more eflicientlydeflected sidewise. The

deflection is greatly aided and, in fact, in-

duced by the tapering or funnel or conical shape of the casing, and bythis means only a fraction of the gas or gas and air mixture is admittedto the igniter and the cooling due to an excess of gas and theconsequent delaying of the igniting is obviated.

I am aware that downwardly-convex perforated casings have been employedbefore my invention for protecting the self-acting igniting-pill forgas-lamps; but in all these devices the igniting-pill was subject to thedestructive action of the gases of combustion of the flame, which, as iswell known, spoil the platinum sponge of the igniter. This is avoided inmy invention by the straight walls and the strictly conical-pointedshape of that part of the protecting device which is just above theflame, the current of gases of combustion which rise from the flamebeing thereby deflected sidewise and thrown toward the walls of thelamp-chimney or caused to flow along the outside only of the straightwalls of the device, while in all those protecting devices which are ofpear shape or of other curved or irregular shape the gases of combustionwill enter into the interior of the easing and in such cases where theperforations of the casing are large, as is the case in most devices ofthis kind as heretofore constructed, even in a heated condition, whileif the casing is provided throughout with small perforations, as is thecase in my invention, the ascending gases are also cooled, so that evenany minute traces of gases of combustion that might yet enter into thecasing are prevented from acting injuriously upon the igniter. I havefound that the pointed conical shape of the bottom of the protectingdevice is instrumental in causing the deflection of the gases ofcombustion, whereby the rapid spoiling of the igniter so much complainedof in the previous devices is obviated.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates, is

Protecting device for gas-igniters, comprising a spirally tightly Wound,substantially straight walled wire coil with strictly-conical, straight,pointed and perforated end, and a self-acting igniter within said casingand above said conical end and means at the interior of said coil forsuspending the igniter about centrally from the open top of said casingand means for securing the device to the lampchimney top, substantiallyas described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of twowitnesses.

v JACQUES KELLERMANN. Witnesses:

WOLDEMAR HAUPT, HENRY HASPER.

